Politics – South of Town: Notes and Scenes from Texas' Upper Gulf Coast

Political Prophecy in “The Cougar”

I was viewing an old copy of The Cougar online the other day and I ran across this piece from the November 29, 1962 edition. I was a student at UH then but I do not remember seeing this piece by news editor, John Davis. It was written before the Kennedy assassination and the build up of troops in Vietnam.

I remember well the apathy of the early sixties but not this piece. It follows in full.

From The Cougar, University of Houston, November 29, 1962, Headlined: Today’s Apathetic Student To Lead World Tomorrow by John Davis

From the University of Houston’s Student Newspaper, “The Cougar,” in 1962

Young Republicans and Young Democrats at UH might as well pack up and go home. The fog of political apathy on this campus is impenetrable.

Two recent articles in The Cougar concerning politics brought letters only from those directly concerned. One an editorial concerning campaigning in the classroom brought a concurring opinion from the political science faculty.

The other, concerning the Student Peace Union, drew attention from four people: members of that organization.

The rest of the student body remained silent. Obviously few read it, and those who did probably didn’t understand it.

Reporters taking polls on the gubernatorial race discovered that apathy is not the only problem. Ignorance takes a strong second place. For example, two male students when quizzed on their choice between congressional candidates Baker and Casey, giggled and then picked Casey “because he’s a good doctor,” a girl shrugged and said that she didn’t know there was going to be an election, many weren’t familiar with any of the candidates, and few understood the difference between a primary and a general election.

The problem of political apathy and ignorance is certainly not new. George Washington complained about it.

A political science faculty member discussing the problem informally was reminded of an incident from ancient Greece. When the security of Athens was threatened, the citizens asked a philosopher if it were possible that Zeus might let their city be destroyed. The philosopher replied that if Athens fell it would not be the will of Zeus, but the stupidity of the Athenians.

Whether the enemy be external or internal, laxity and indifference is a breeding ground for tyranny. Anyone who feels that his vote doesn’t really matter and therefore he need not be concerned with the issues is shirking responsibility. Someone will take that responsibility for them. Too many times it has been a person like Adolph Hitler.

250 and Still Moving toward Democracy, Freedom and Justice

Here’s wishing everyone a happy Fourth of July.

There is much for us to think about after 250 years of independence from the crown. Racism persists despite a civil war that resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths, both by conflict and disease that was rife on the battlefields. We have moved only haltingly toward justice. We have yet to attain it; we continue the struggle. It is a struggle that goes on in every age.

With little expectation of achieving a full and final justice through political means, we can at least insist on fundamental fairness and support of the civic virtues of public education designed to provide people with the tools they need to perform the role of citizen and create an environment that is rooted in the rule of law.

The preamble to the Constitution of the United States provides the formula in the clearest and most concise terms. If we want a constitutional republic, we the people must provide its grounding.

A renaissance of public education and a revival of mature, private and free religion will set us back on the path from which we have strayed. One election will not fix it. One candidate will not fix it. One party will not fix it.

Do these things: pay your taxes; support your public schools; and practice the religion of your family’s tradition or do some reading and studying and follow a faith of your own choosing. But do not be influenced by algorithms dumped into social media by a plutocrat whose interests are to make more money and pay less taxes.

So, go out and march on No Kings Day. But that’s not enough. Vote. And here’s some advice from the church I attend: live every day as a citizen who loves boldly, serves joyfully and leads courageously. It’s a formula that can, once again, make this country the kind of place that has attracted people from other continents for all of our 250 years. And that has made us a beautiful country built on the strength of many colors and cultures.

Be proud of America. But we’re not done yet. Let’s get to work.

2020 – A SILENT GENERATION LAMENT

The cohort of Americans born between 1928 and 1945 has been called the Silent Generation. I didn’t know that I was a member of the Silent Generation until I wrote the piece below and I looked up “generation” in Wikipedia to see if I was indeed a boomer myself or, maybe, even an undeserving member of what they were calling the Greatest Generation. I found out that I am stuck in between the two. We are hardly noticed by the folks who try to generalize about the behavioral characteristics of people born in certain age cohorts.

I was late coming to the Silent Generation so my adult years were spent with talk everywhere about “boomers.” Marketing and media primarily addressed their needs and preferences. I heard so much about boomers that I subconsciously identified and, in any case, I was very nearly one myself since you could say that I was born on the cusp. But as I read more about those years between 1928 and 1945, I could see how completely my life was in the grip of that history.

What follows is very long. If you decide to read it, you will see that it is laid out like a poem. If it reads like prose to you, at least stop for a beat to think before going to the next line. Each bit of our history is loaded with plenty to think about. Yes, Truman and Eisenhower may not excite you. Ozzie and Harriet may bore you. But the kids who first learned about the world from floor model radios and small black and white screens had much to think about. And we have much to regret.

The piece is a personal project. It was completed during the 2020 election campaign and before the Biden-Harris election results were known. Although it is a hopeful sign, it doesn’t really change much. Having lived through alternating and descending stair steps down into Trump hell, I know that it will take more than a single presidential election to get us heading onward and upward again. But we must continue the struggle.

For Everything and Everyone We Love: Protest this Saturday

I just finished a book by two women, a Republican and a Democrat, whose podcast, Pantsuit Politics, discusses political issues in a most unstylish way–with civility and good manners. Civility has been a focus of their discussions and their book gives some good advice on how to make it happen within your own circle of friends and relatives. The book is I Think You’re Wrong (But I’m Listening).

In the meantime, I am doing my best to keep a level head about President Donald Trump. He is a human being and a recipient of God’s grace just like me. Yet I cannot accept his behavior or his politics. That is not a reason for me to berate him as a human being nor the people who follow him. Still, my faith requires me to speak out when things are going badly in my country and the world. And they are going badly–very badly.

That is why I support the No Kings Day demonstrations that will take place around the country Saturday, March 28. I am a little past my street-marching prime or I would be there for this one. I would be there because I believe in peace, democracy, the basic rights of all human beings, and the need to act quickly and sensibly to control the warming of our planet. I believe it is within our power to achieve peace, to save our climate for human life, to save democracy, and to protect the rights of all of us if we act together and act now.

If you want to be a part of the No Kings Day protest, go to nokings.org for more information on how to locate and bond with people in your area who see the need to act. Show solidarity with those who share your concerns: people of all political parties, sexual identities, skin colors, languages and countries of origin. Spend some time Saturday showing America that we know the importance of loving boldly, serving joyfully, and leading courageously. It is our duty as citizens. I hope this little posting is a way for me to help.

And I ask your forgiveness for all my past violations of principles of civil political discourse. But I’m afraid I can’t help myself: I love political satire and will probably never try to give it up. .

WSMD?

Some thoughts on the 2024 update of Social Principles of the United Methodist Church

Mary Oliver once asked, “What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” (From her poem The Summer Day in her collection, Devotions, 2017.)

As I read through the United Methodist Church’s new edition of the social principles, I expected the section on the political community to give some guidance on an important question that goes beyond individual rights and standards of justice and mercy for government policy. To wit, what are the individual Christian’s responsibilities as citizens and participants? This question invites us to reflect deeply on our participation and choices: What will you do with your one wild and precious vote — that allocation of political power granted to you and protected by our constitution.

Should not Methodists approach the voting booth with the same prayerful consideration the General Conference used asking, “What would Jesus do?” The Social Principles seem to encourage this kind of reflection, urging us to align our civic actions with our faith. While some folks wear WWJD bracelets as a reminder, true spiritual discipline goes beyond outward symbols. It calls on us to act with courage, guided by love and prayer, especially in times when the world seems to be moving in troubling directions.

The latest edition of the United Methodist Church’s Social Principles (adopted in 2024) challenges us to confront injustice and to advocate for the vulnerable. Today, we see leaders in government who overlook the needs of the poor. We look on as school boards and legislatures ban books, and promote a growing disregard for science — a key driver of humane progress in all fields of human endeavor. The “culture war” threatens to extinguish the flickering candles of the Enlightenment, while the dream of a truly democratic society feels increasingly distant—even in America, which once inspired the people of other nations to pursue more participatory and humane forms of governance.

In such times, our faith calls us to respond—not with despair, but with hope, courage, and a commitment to justice. Protected only by love and prayer in an ongoing struggle for social and political mercy and justice, we are invited to participate actively in shaping a more compassionate and democratic world.

Most important of all, we should be called to think rather than simply react when we enter the voting arena. In poll after poll there is evidence that Americans dislike and do not trust political parties. Yet the typical response of these same voters, when an executive or representative of one’s own political party does or says something they do not like, is to simply vote for the other party. The intent may be punitive, but the effect is to further legitimize the two party system.

To an extent, every politician is the victim of the branding that voters have been encouraged to use as shortcuts to thinking and placing issues in a context of overall policy.

So, Methodists, do this: read, think, be civil and non-violent in all your political interactions. If you do those things, it will then be fair for you to ask: What would Jesus do? And if you need one of those little bracelets to remind you, get one.

Better yet, get one that suggests the question in a way that would remind us of the expectation Jesus has of us as members of the United Methodist Church: WSMD? I don’t think it will help to take your copy of Social Principles of The United Methodist Church, 2025-2028 into your voting station. It mostly says the same thing but it’s too long to print on a bracelet.

Reflections on Democracy: Lessons from the White House, 1964 and 2025

I had decided to let this thing go, this WordPress subscription. I stopped it but I was informed by the WordPress powers (that’s their spelling with the capital P in the miDDle) that I had recently paid for a year and I could post until my renewal date but no longer if I didn’t renew. So I left it to fallow and let the old posts rot in the field thinking that I would never post again.

I’m not sure what pushed me over the edge and led me to reach out again last night but maybe it was the criminal destruction of the East Wing of the White House. I have always felt myself to be a part owner of the White House with a bit of personal interest in its preservation as a public historical asset.

I went there once in 1964 as a college student invited by President Lyndon Johnson who, working from a mailing list, asked Dr. Phillip Hoffman of the University of Houston to identify and sponsor a student leader to come to a special White House student leaders meeting.

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